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T-Mobile announces Caller Verification technology to combat Spammers

This caller verification technology is based on STIR and SHAKEN standards which deter spam or spoof calls.

Currently, the technology will be available to T-Mobile customer who use Samsung Galaxy Note 9. The company plans to roll-out the technology to more smartphones in 2019.

T-Mobile’s new “Caller Verified” feature could soon end spam woes for many of its users. This recently introduced technology feature is now freely available for its Un-carrier customers. Based on STIR/SHAKEN implementations, “Caller Verified” will alert users on incoming calls that are not authentic.

With this feature, T-Mobile aims to reduce the burgeoning spam call traffic in the country. In addition, the wireless network provider is also planning to extend this technology to more smartphones, as well as provide support across other regions by the end of the year.

New in the game

Over the past few years, T-Mobile has experimented with many scam call protection services such as Scam ID, Scam Block, and NameID provided to its users. All these developments indicate the carrier’s firm stand against spammers.

T-Mobile is the first company to introduce call verification technology. So, the success of the technology depends on how other carriers are likely to follow suit with STIR/SHAKEN standards. Furthermore, this tech only tells which calls are not coming from a genuine source. It does not pinpoint spammers.

What are the STIR/SHAKEN standards?

STIR (Secure Telephony Identity Revisited) and SHAKEN (Secure Handling of Asserted information using toKENs) are the standards that are designed to solve the caller identity problems like those in spoof calls.

STIR and SHAKEN leverage digital certificates, based on common public key cryptography (PKC) techniques for ensuring the authenticity of the calling number. Only trusted certificate authorities can provide digital certificates to the telephone service providers. Due to the certificate technology, the device which receives the call is able to verify the accuracy of the calling number and whether it has been spoofed.

In 2018, these standards were finally brought into effect by The Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS), which oversees the standards in the ICT industry.

Roll-out plans

Currently, only T-Mobile customers with Samsung Galaxy Note 9 can avail the benefits of this technology. However, T-Mobile plans to roll-out the technology to more smartphones later in 2019.

Ultimately, putting an end to ‘spamming’ will require collaborative efforts from telecom companies and regulatory authorities to create universal solutions.

Ryan Stewart

Ryan is a senior cybersecurity and privacy analyst. He keenly follows the innovation and development in cybersecurity technologies, and loves to educate everyone about the what, why, and how of major incidents in the cybersecurity world.

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